Stock Market & Financial Investment News

Many corporate executives sold shares before new tax rate vote, WSJ reportsAs Congress battled over higher tax rates in December, numerous corporate executives sold large chunks of stock, saving themselves millions of dollars in taxes, reports the Wall Street Journal. The Journal reviewed securities filings and found that 58 executives sold stock valued at $10M or more last month. On January 1, Congress voted to increase taxes on income, capital gains and dividends for high earners.Reference Link

FDA authorizes 23andMe to market genetic testing for Bloom SyndromeThe U.S. Food and Drug Administration yesterday authorized for marketing Google-backed 23andMe’s Bloom Syndrome carrier test, a direct-to-consumer genetic test to determine whether a healthy person has a variant in a gene that could lead to their offspring inheriting the serious disorder. Along with this authorization, the FDA is also classifying carrier screening tests as class II. In addition, the FDA intends to exempt these devices from FDA premarket review. The agency plans to issue a notice that announces the intent to exempt these tests and that provides a 30-day period for public comment.

YouTube to release stand-alone app for kids, WSJ saysGoogle's YouTube is planning to release a smartphone and tablet app for kids featuring original episodes of television shows including "Thomas the Tank Engine" and "Sesame Street," as well as content from existing YouTube kids channels, reports the Wall Street Journal, citing a person familiar with the matter. The app -- slated for an official reveal Monday at the Kidscreen Summit -- will initially only be available for Android devices. The source said the inclusion of ads is "under discussion." Reference Link

Chicago Bridge & Iron receives polypropylene technology award in EgyptCB&I has been awarded a contract by Carbon Holdings for the license and engineering design of a polypropylene unit to be built in Ain Sokhna, Egypt.

AT&T to match Google Fiber speed, pricing in Kansas City area, KC Star saysAT&T (T) announced on Sunday that it would offer Internet service in Kansas City and several of itssuburbs, with the same speed and pricing as Internet service provided by Google's Google Fiber service in the region, according to The Kansas City Star. Reference Link